Meal Plan: 3/11 - 3/17

Mexican Monday: Rainforest Cafe (bday dinner)

Oriental Tuesday: crockpot Terriyaki w/ brown rice

Twisted Wednesday: split pea soup w/ GF cornbread

Authentic Thursday: "cheesey" pasta w/ German sausage

TGIFriday: BLT's w/ spiced fries

Super Saturday: DATE NIGHT

Special Sunday: pot roast w/ mashed potatoes

Upcoming recipe: "cheesey" pasta.  As in pasta without cheese.  Dairy free pasta, that also happens to be gluten free.  Maybe I should just call it free pasta...  *B

Coq Sans Vin

When I was newly married I would happily go through my Betty Crocker cookbook (a wedding gift), select a recipe and experiment on my new husband.  This dish was one of the first I tried in our itty bitty kitchen, and I've been cooking it ever since.  Whenever we had people over for dinner, we served this.  Whenever I wanted to impress the in-laws, I'd make this.  I've tweaked it a bit each time, getting closer and closer to perfection...  And I am happy to report that it is has indeed been perfected :)

Adapted from Betty Crocker

Ingredients:

• 6-8 chicken thighs, rinsed and dried
• 1 c. flour (make it GF by using equal parts sorghum, tapioca and brown rice flour)
• 2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. pepper
• 1/2 onion, chopped/sliced
• 6 carrots, scrubbed & cut into fourths (baby carrots work great, too)
• 4 - 8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
• 8 slices of bacon OR 2 chicken sausage links, diced
• 2 c. chicken broth
• 2 T. apple cider vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. dried thyme
• 1/2 t. dried parsley (opt)
• 1 bay leaf (opt)

Directions:

1. Combine flour, 2 t. salt and 1/2 t. pepper into a large ziplock bag.  Add chicken and coat evenly in flour mixture.  Remove chicken and set aside.  And throw that nasty bag away!
2. Heat a large cast iron pot over medium heat.  Cook bacon/sausage until done.  Remove from pot and set aside.
3. Allow pot to get nice and hot and add the dredged chicken in single layers.  Cook for two minutes per side, or until brown.  Remove chicken from pot and set aside.
4. Add onions, carrots and mushrooms to pot.  Cook for one minute, add garlic and cook for a minute longer.
5. Add chicken broth, apple cider vinegar, 1/2 t. salt and thyme.  Stir well.
6. Place chicken on top and sprinkle with bacon.  Remove from heat.  Cover pot and place in a 275 degree oven.
7. For every pound of chicken, cook for 1 - 1.5 hours.  So if you have 3 pounds of chicken, cook for 3 - 4.5 hours.
8. Remove from oven and serve with mashed potatoes.  You can use the liquid straight from the pot, or you can make a killer gravy with it.
9. Another option is to let it sit overnight in the fridge and serve it the next day.  This allows the fat to raise to the service and solidify, making it easier to remove before reheating.  That is, if you want to...

The original recipe is called "Coq Au Vin" which is French for "chicken with wine".  As you may have noticed, my recipe does not use wine.  That's where the extra cup of chicken broth, plus the apple cider vinegar, comes from.  That's my secret wine substitute.  And I will have you know that both of my parents speak French, one lived in Quebec while the other lived in France, and both think this dish is awesome!  So there.  *B

for little miss and her birthday

[recipe]

how to meal plan

I love planning meals!  But then again, I'm a list-maker (not to be confused with a list-follower).  I've been consistently planning meals for our family for years, and I forget how daunting it can seem for others.  I've planned meals for more people than I can count, and I've even considered starting a meal planning business...  But who knows if/when that will ever happen!  So in the meantime, I thought I'd put together a list (!) of how I go about planning, in hopes of helping anyone out there who might be interested:

1.  List as many of your family favorite meals off the top of your head.

2.  Go through cookbooks and websites to help jog your memory and/or come up with meals you’d like to try.

3.  Organize your meals into seven categories.  For example: Mexican, Italian, Vegetarian, Soups, Salads, etc.

4.  Decide on your food-related goals: Eat fish once a week, have a leftovers night, incorporate more meatless meals, take-out, etc.

5.  Create theme nights based off of steps 3 and 4.  Assign each day of the week with a type of meal to plan around.  Use silly names to make it fun and exciting: Mexican Monday, Oriental Tuesday, Twisted Wednesday (recycled leftovers), Authentic Thursday, TGIFriday, Super Simple Saturday, Special Sunday.

6.  Refer back to your list of meals from steps 1 and 2.  Start plugging meal ideas into your theme nights, while keeping your nutritional goals in mind: Fish once a week = fish tacos for Mexican Monday one week, and shrimp scampi for Authentic Thursday the following week.

7.  Make sure to schedule date nights and intersperse difficult/experimental meals with fast/easy meals.  Save the fancy stuff for the weekends, when you have more time.  Make new meals out of old ones (leftovers), so you're left with minimal prep work while diversifying your meals: Leftover pot roast from Sunday will make for a great beef stew on Wednesday.

8.  Start with scheduling 1-2 weeks at a time.  Gradually build up to a month’s worth of meals, then four months.  Repeat your rotation of meals every three months and before you know it you’ll have a year’s worth of meals planned!

9.  Print out your year’s worth of meals and file away in a binder.  Include a calendar for each month, with its corresponding recipes and shopping lists for future use.  Keep pages in clear sheet protectors to protect them from spills and such.  OR if you’d rather have your meal plan in a digital format, look into ZipList or RecipeBox.  There are a lot of websites and apps available that help keep your meals organized, which makes it readily accessible if you keep a smart phone or tablet with you.

10.  Print out a weekly calendar and display it on the fridge to ward off the dreaded “What’s for breakfast/lunch/dinner?” question(s).  This way kids know what they’re eating and when they’re eating it.

11.  Make it easy: Keep breakfasts, lunches and snacks simple so you’re not burned out come dinner time.

12.  The other way to plan meals is to plan around your grocery store’s current deals, or after you visit your local farmer’s market, or CSA pick-up.  This makes planning a year’s worth of meals more difficult, but you should be able to think ahead and plan around the seasons’ harvest.  Or better yet, use your meal plan to help rotate through your food storage!

And that's that!  Do you like planning meals?  I would love to hear what works for you!  Feel free to use my weekly calendar (above) as a guide to help you create your own (below).  Just right-click, open in new tab/window, zoom, save, and print :)

Happy planning!  *B

Meal Plan: 3/4 - 3/10

Gasp!  A meal plan?  Yes, yes it is.  This is me attempting to get back in the swing of things...

Mexican Monday: awesome meatless chili w/ cornbread
Oriental Tuesday: maple-glazed salmon w/ brown rice & roasted veggies
Twisted Wednesday: skillet hash OR quiche
Authentic Thursday: baked chicken w/ butternut squash sauce & grilled veggie quinoa
TGIFriday: swedish meatballs w/ mashed potatoes
Super Saturday: DATE NIGHT
Special Sunday: potato soup w/ mighty muffins

Upcoming recipe: The much anticipated and long-time coming Coq Sans Vin.  That's French for "chicken without wine".  And let me tell you, it's amazing!  *B

free eating

Our decision to go gluten free started a year ago.  To be honest, it really started years ago, before me and the hub were even married.  Brad has always been sensitive to wheat, so we've never really been wheat fiends.  And we still eat wheat on occasion.  No, we do not have celiac disease.  But we are all gluten intolerant.  It not only bothers our tummies when eaten in large amounts, but it also effects our moods and behavior.

Will was really struggling in school.  Not academically, but socially and emotionally.  He was starting to have some serious breakdowns that were beginning to affect his work.  And then one day, he got this crazy rash around his eyes.  We hadn't switched laundry soap and it wasn't seasonal allergies.  So my thoughts turned to food, as usual ;)

I'd like to think we eat pretty healthy.  We're wary of food dyes, high fructose corn syrup, and MSG.  And now I've added wheat and dairy to our watch list.  The rash cleared up and has never returned.  We made a few other changes at home (like limiting screen time), and Will's behavior has improved.  He stopped acting out and shutting down.  He's always been an intense child, has a hard time focusing, and gets distracted easily.  But he's a boy, and instead of labeling him as something he's not (ADHD), we've worked on improving our diet and I've seen a noticeable change.

We still limit our wheat and dairy intake, and anytime I get lax on it Will reacts almost immediately.  It's usually after a difficult week at home/school that I'll start to look back on what we've been eating.  That slice of birthday cake, the cookie at church, and the crackers at school start to add up and it shows.  I've also noticed that the kids are more tired, ornery and have dark circles under their eyes whenever we eat too much wheat/dairy.

Actually, we're all sick and tired after a wheat/dairy binge.  So it's best to just save it for special occasions.  Besides, I think most people can afford to eat less wheat.  I love the challenge going gluten free has presented me with.  Did you know that there are 19 whole grains?  NINETEEN!!!  If anything, eat less wheat so you can eat more (other) grains.  Think of all the nutrients and flavors you might be missing out on!

I understand how intimidating it might be to change your eating habits.  But it is entirely possible and not nearly as impossible as you might think!  I know that going gluten free is viewed as the latest food fad, but feel free to use that to your advantage.  There are so many more foods readily available.  It's never been easier to experiment with more grains than it is today.  Just remember that the less processed you eat, the better.

Also, going gluten free is not necessarily a weight-loss miracle cure. Some people can, and do, lose weight by going gluten free because they start eating a more whole-food diet.  It's great that you can find so many gluten free snacks and treats nowadays, but again, save those for special occasions.  Instead, eat more fruits and vegetables.  And please, eat more grains.  Experiment, and have fun.  And enjoy food again.

Because it's not about what you can't eat, it's about what you can eat!  *B

eat your heart out

And happy Valentine's Day to you, too!  *B